Sounds like a pirate ship, doesn't it? I'll come back to that later.
"La Perla Blanca" is a small boutique hotel in Fuente de la Higuera, Ronda. It backs onto my garden, so we're neighbours.
Aerial view of La Perla Blanca[Trip Advisor]
It's a charming place, well, was - I've heard it's gone downhill lately, but we'll come back to that too.
"La Perla Blanca" 2011
When we moved to our new "home" in February 2011, we got to know the incumbent "landlords". The hotel is leased from the owner, allegedly the richest man in Ronda.
The landlords back then were a German couple and we got quite friendly with them. Then, all of a sudden they were gone!
The next incumbents were Dutch. We knew them too. They took over the Hotel Don Benito as well, but they didn't make a success of either and did a "runner" leaving a trail of debt!
A couple from South Africa had a go, but they didn't last long either!
Hotel Don Benito, now Hotel Ronda Valley [Central de Reservas]
"La Perla Blanca" 2015
Next came Stewart, a Yorkshireman, and his wife. They came from the Caribbean where they had been working on yachts as crew.
They split up within a short time, but Stewart stayed. He put his heart and soul into "La Perla Blanca", renovated the rooms, changed the public areas and worked hard on the extensive grounds.
After a while he took up with a Scottish Widow (No, not the insurance company!), who had been living in nearby Benaojan for years. Lorna moved in and took charge of the cleaning, changeovers, etc.
Then, all of a sudden, Stewart gave up the lease and moved to Benaojan to live with Lorna. He started work as a peon and proved to be very good. He worked for me and regularly for Kevin, an English builder friend.
Next, he and Lorna went back to the UK, to Huddersfield, Stewart's home town. I don't know the details, but it clearly didn't work out. He stayed there and she came back to Andalucía.
"La Perla Blanca" - the pirate era
The "pirate" was Julian, Scottish-born, but from Leeds. His gorgeous much younger wife, Jodie, also came from Leeds. They had two children together, who shall remain nameless. They all came out and took over the hotel.
I helped them get their kids in school in Ronda, and enrolled them on a language course. Julian never attended.
At the beginning of their tenure they did good things and the hotel was often full. We became friends, as well as neighbours.
Julian was very generous, and often bought our drinks. He even loaned me his Land Rover to go to the coast to pick up some furniture I'd bought down there.
I bought his VW Transporter from him, which he later incinerated in a drunken rage. It was a write-off!
"Julian" [Courtesy of Freepik]
The police know it was him, and so do several neighbours, but they refused to help the police investigators. Great neighbours, eh?
The Marshalls eventually did a prolonged "midnight flit" and went back to the UK leaving a trail of debts behind them. Astonishingly, Spain and the UK do not have an extradition treaty, so he's got away with it!
Last I heard he and Jodie have divorced and he spends his time in the Philippines with teenage prostitutes.
What was the attraction, we all wonder? He was short, fat, ugly, bald and operated "under the radar".
Either he has a "big 'un" or these women are attracted by his money.
"La Perla Blanca" - post-thug
Tom, from South Africa, took over the lease and, once settled, brought his wife and children over. I met Tom a few times, but he preferred to keep himself to himself. I only met his wife and oldest daughter once.
Then, they too suddenly went ..... to be replaced by .....
Erik, a Dutchman with an estate agency on the Costa del Sol. I never met Erik, but met his lovely Colombian wife.
Then, they too disappeared .....
They have been replaced by a Moroccan couple, who I've not clapped eyes on yet. Rumour has it that they've let the place go. That would be a great shame.
Should I go round and introduce myself?
(Answers on a postcard to .....)
© Pablo de Ronda
Pictures:
Central de Reservas, Freepik, Trip Advisor,
Links:
Tags:
Central de Reservas, Erik, Freepik, La Perla Blanca, Hotel Ronda Valley, Julian, Jodie, Pablo de Ronda, Paul Whitelock, Ronda, Stewart, Tom, Trip Advisor,